Synthetic educational example, not market data. Preview: no payments accepted.

StrikePath teaches options with live examples on made-up markets. Free, no sign-up.

How much does one option contract cost?

Multiply the quoted price by 100. Option prices are quoted a share, and one standard stock option contract covers 100 shares 1, so a call quoted at $2.50 costs $250 a contract 2, before fees.

A $50 stock and its calls at 30% implied volatility (made-up numbers). Change the strike and the days left.

Source: the StrikePath engine, pricing with the Black–Scholes formula 3 at 4.3% interest a year; a simulated example, not market prices. For learning; not advice.

Why 100

A standard equity option has a 100 multiplier: it controls 100 shares 1. A $50 call with 30 days left at 30% implied volatility is quoted at $1.80 by the formula 3, so one contract costs $180, while the 100 shares themselves would cost $5,000.

What sets the quote

By the formula, a strike further above the stock costs less and more time left costs more 3: move the strike and the days to see both. A stock that swings more commands a higher premium 4.

What this shows, and what it doesn't

Model prices for a made-up stock, before fees and the bid-ask spread. A market order buys at or near the ask 5. Check the contract details your broker shows before you buy.

Go further

Start the first lesson →No sign-up.How much can I lose buying a call? →What you pay, and no more.
Sources (5), checked 20 October 2026 and 27 October 2026
  1. The Options Clearing Corporation, “Primer: Equity (stock and ETF) Options”. Read it (read 27 October 2026)
  2. Montréal Exchange, “Module 1: Introduction to Options”. Read it (read 27 October 2026)
  3. Fischer Black and Myron Scholes, “The Pricing of Options and Corporate Liabilities”, Journal of Political Economy 81(3), 637–654, 1973. Read it (read 20 October 2026)
  4. The Options Clearing Corporation, “Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options” (June 2024), chapters I to III. Read it (read 20 October 2026)
  5. US Securities and Exchange Commission, Investor.gov, “Types of Orders”. Read it (read 20 October 2026)

Now try it on a scenario of your own

Pick where a simulated stock might be, and by when: drag one dot and see, side by side, what buying shares, one option, or a pair of options (a call or put spread) would each do. Free, no sign-up.

Check a trade before you make it →